Gqeberha firearms dealer Karen Webb. (Photo: Facebook) 
Just as it seemed things were looking up for a Gqeberha firearms dealer facing a laundry list of criminal charges, the State brought more cases against her when she returned to the city’s magistrates’ court on Monday, including another murder charge.
As Karen Webb is set to bring a new bail application before the Gqeberha Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, investigating officers came to court on Monday with two new dockets to add to her ever-expanding list of charges.
The 41-year-old owner of the now defunct Webb’s Arms has been in custody since her arrest over a string of firearms-related charges in February 2024.
Among the charges against her are theft, fraud, firearm smuggling, providing firearms to persons not licensed to possess them, and murder.
The saga began in 2019, when Webb provided storage for another firearms dealer, Chris Evans, after his business, Aquila Arms, collapsed. Evans’ stock was kept on the Webb’s Arms premises, but in a separate safe from Webb’s stock.
In 2023, firearms recovered from crime scenes in Nelson Mandela Bay, the Western Cape and Gauteng were linked to Evans’ cache — and, crucially, to weapons stored at Webb’s premises. Evans later accused Webb of stealing weapons from his safe and selling them illegally.
She was later accused of illegally moving her dealer stock when her business closed, to premises in the Western Cape without notifying the police. A charge of murder was also brought against her after a .38-special Smith & Wesson revolver, alleged to be from Evans’ missing stock, was linked to the October 2022 death of Andrew Lamont in Kariega.
Webb has been in custody at North End prison since February 2024. Her initial bid for bail was dismissed, but succeeded on appeal in the Makhanda High Court in June. She was granted bail of R10,000. However, she remained behind bars as more charges had been brought against her before the appeal.
Read more: Gqeberha gun dealer at centre of arms scandal wins bail appeal — but stays behind bars for now
When she returned to court on Monday, the State brought another murder charge against her. While details of the case were not discussed in open court, it is believed that the charges related to the death of a man in Gqeberha in December 2024. The murder weapon was another of Evans’s firearms that went missing from Webb’s premises.
This charge will be added to Webb’s ongoing case and will form part of the pending bail proceedings.
Another charge of theft was brought against her by her ex-husband, Arthur Webb, accusing her of selling household goods belonging to him, including furniture, after their divorce several years ago. It is unclear at this stage whether this charge will be added to the other charges before the court.
The case has caused alarm across the country. Hundreds of firearms once held in storage at Webb’s Arms have reportedly ended up at crime scenes. Police say many of the weapons were used in robberies and gang-related shootings, and 400 firearms are still unaccounted for. DM